James
ChristensenTwo Angels Discussing Botticelli

This When I was on a museum trip a while back, I bought a book on Botticelli. As I kept looking at
the book, I noticed the colors, the hand gestures,
the big feet... all the details that are characteristic
of Botticelli. So I thought, "Let's see how many
Botticelli references I can work in naturally,"

The way the leaves of the greenery in the back
are silhouetted is right out of Botticelli. The flowers on the bodice are from Botticelli. Even so, it's
not a matter of how many Botticelli references can
you find without looking them up. It's an homage.
It is an appreciation. Actually, it's a portrait of two
angels who respect Botticelli so much that they
have fashioned themselves after his work. They're
hot indulging in fashion trends; he's just their
favorite and they love him.

I wanted to be very careful about keeping a reverence for these angels-not a religious, supematural reverence. These are honest, genuine angels, who are honestly, genuinely intrigued by, and admiring of, Botticelli.